In the arms of Animal Care Supervisor Eric Zuercher, Sadie, a declawed three year old cat, shows her declawed front paw while waiting for adoption at the San Francisco Animal Care and Control Shelter in San Francisco. San Francisco supervisor Ross Mirkarimi had recently proposed a legistation in banning declawing in the city after the City's Animal Care and Welfare Commission voted 5-1 in recommending the ban. Declawing, also known as onychectomy, according to The Human Society of the United States, is a surgical procedure often done by amputating the last bone of each toe for reasons ranging from people's fears of being scratched and preventing cats from damaging household items. less

In the arms of Animal Care Supervisor Eric Zuercher, Sadie, a declawed three year old cat, shows her declawed front paw while waiting for adoption at the San Francisco Animal Care and Control Shelter in San ... more

Photo: Stephen Lam, The Chronicle

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Kittens waiting to be adopted at the San Francisco Animal Care and Control Shelter in San Francisco, Calif. on Friday, Sept. 4, 2009.

Kittens waiting to be adopted at the San Francisco Animal Care and Control Shelter in San Francisco, Calif. on Friday, Sept. 4, 2009.

Photo: Stephen Lam, The Chronicle

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In the arms of Animal Care Supervisor Eric Zuercher, Sadie, a declawed three year old cat, shows its declawed front paw while waiting for adoption at the San Francisco Animal Care and Control Shelter in San Francisco, Calif. on Friday, Sept. 4, 2009. San Francisco supervisor Ross Mirkarimi had recently proposed a legistation in banning declawing in the city after the City's Animal Care and Welfare Commission voted 5-1 in recommending the ban. Declawing, also known as onychectomy, according to The Human Society of the United States, is a surgical procedure often done by amputating the last bone of each toe for reasons ranging from people's fears of being scratched and preventing cats from damaging household items. less

In the arms of Animal Care Supervisor Eric Zuercher, Sadie, a declawed three year old cat, shows its declawed front paw while waiting for adoption at the San Francisco Animal Care and Control Shelter in San ... more

Photo: Stephen Lam, The Chronicle

Image 4 of 4

Fur flies over proposed ban on declawing cats

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In this pet-crazy town, it sounds like a no-brainer: a proposed ban on the declawing of cats, framed by supporters as a simple animal cruelty measure.

But the ban is opposed by the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and others. While the SFSPCA opposes declawing in general and does not practice it at its hospital, it argues that politicians shouldn't regulate the medical procedures. And the organization's director worries the proposed law could actually lead to more abandoned or euthanized cats.

Crafted by San Francisco's Animal Welfare Commission, an advisory body, and sponsored by Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, the legislation would bar the onychectomy (declawing) and tendonectomy (removal of the flexor tendon) procedures in San Francisco, unless they are deemed medically necessary.

The measure would effectively halt the procedures that cat owners have used largely to save themselves and their furniture from scratches. The practice, veterinarians say, has widely fallen out of favor in recent years anyway and is already banned in West Hollywood and about 25 countries, including the United Kingdom.

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If passed, the legislation would become effective before a new state law is enacted in January that would prohibit local jurisdictions from creating legislation to ban declawing. The proposal also comes six years after the Board of Supervisors passed a nonbinding measure opposing declawing, and two years after West Hollywood's similar ordinance survived a legal challenge by the California Veterinary Medical Association. The association, which represents more than 6,000 California vets, also opposes San Francisco's ordinance.

Mirkarimi noted that declawing involves not only removing claws but also the last bone of each toe; his measure compares the procedure to cutting off a person's finger at the last joint. The legislation also discusses the importance of claws to cats' health and well-being.

"It comes down to animal cruelty and mutilating an animal for the convenience of its guardian," said Sally Stephens, president of the Animal Welfare Commission, who raised the issue earlier this year.

Stephens and others - including SFSPCA President Jan McHugh-Smith - pointed out that there are many other ways to deal with a cat that scratches too much, including behavior training, scratching posts, trimming claws and "soft paws," temporary vinyl caps that can be glued to a cat's claws. Stephens pointed to federal health guidelines that show that even immune-compromised people can keep cats without declawing them as long as the cat more than a year old and the owner avoids rough play and washes any cut immediately.

But McHugh-Smith and Mark Nunez, president of the California Veterinary Medical Association, said they have concerns about legislating bans on medical procedures.

"We don't believe medical management procedures should be made by city council members. They should be made by professionals," Nunez said.

McHugh-Smith said the SFSPCA is also concerned about the propensity for abandonment.

"The SFSPCA is opposed to declawing ... but we are concerned about the option being taken away from the guardian," she said. "They could potentially give up the pet, and it could end up in a shelter and end up being euthanized."

Stephens said abandonment can occur anyway, as cats that scratch can often default to biting and other aggressive behavior once their claws are removed. She said training is a more reliable and humane option.